Quake IV Confirmed For QuakeCon

Gamespot has the word that Quake IV will get some face time at QuakeCon this year. id CEO Hollenshead released the information at the Xbox Doom 3 launch event. From the article: "Over the past few years, PC game sales have either declined a little bit or stayed relatively flat, while console game sales have seen mostly double-digit growth. I don't know if we'll be releasing multiple SKUs at the same time, but as for PS3 and Xbox 2 and so on, yes, we will continue our development effort on the consoles."

PC game decline

[OAB_X]

A lot of the decline in PC games is the lack of marketing, lack of (good) original titles, and high initial cost to get started with it.

Lots of console games are being released on the PC, and a lot of PC games released on the consoles. Consoles attract more money to developers because there is a larger installed userbase, PC Gamers need to be a bit more tech savvy then their console brothers and sisters to get games to work, and the keyboard/mouse configuration is less intuitive then a gamepad.

Having said that, I like PC Gaming MUCH better.

Re:PC game decline

[Black Pete]

PC Gamers need to be a bit more tech savvy then their console brothers and sisters to get games to work

I can't agree with this enough. When you want to play a game on the console, all you have to do is walk into a store, buy the game, unwrap the box, pop a bottle of beer, pop the disc into the console, and you're playing.

This is not the case with the PC. You've got to have the latest drivers, make sure the drive is clutter-free, no background apps hogging all CPU resources, etc. before you finally pop in the disc to begin "installing" the game (and experience all the joys that goes with installing any game - CD shuffling, failed installs, etc.) I'm not even going to touch the Steam issue...

Why can't PC games just allow you to pop in a disc and begin playing? These days pretty much everyone should have a high-speed CD reader at the very least, if not a DVD drive, so the "games run faster on the HDD" excuse isn't a valid reason these days.

I consider myself a hardcore gamer -- heck I write game software for a living -- but these days I find myself buying console games specifically to avoid the hassles of PC gaming installation issues. After a long day of staring at code on a monitor, the last thing I want to do is tinker around with computers when I get home.

Re:Mouse and keyboards

[kafka47]

As someone who until recently did all his FPS gaming on consoles, I have to say I prefer a dual-analog controller over a mouse and keyboard.

I would invite you to bring your favourite FPS game and your dual-analog controller online... and play against us PC-based mouse users anytime. :-)

I wouldn't be so sure that everyone playing FPS on consoles is in a rush to get a mouse and keyboard set up

They will if it means not losing anymore. :-)

/Kafka

Re:Mouse and keyboards

[snuf23]

It's what you are used to. If you started on a dual analog with FPS games you are "wired" for that. Your natural responses are in tune to that controller.
For me playing an FPS on a console, feels like I have mittens on or something. It is awkward and imprecise. This is however, because it's the controller I am used to.
They both have their merits. Consider that the mouse is a much more accurate aiming device, however the controller is much better for setting on the couch type of gaming. We won't see mice and keyboards become standard for consoles, because no one wants a desk and chair blocking the living room TV. The difference is the same reason that there are more two player on a single console games than there are two player on a single computer games. It is the environment that is dictating the controls.

Re:PC game decline

[nc_yori]

As a programmer you should know that CD/DVD read speeds can't even compare to HDD read speeds. Playing from disc also hurts the issue of disk swapping ("Please insert Cinematics Disc.....Please insert Play Disc).

It's true that installation can be a pain in the ass, but playing from HDD means that I can bust out an ISO and put away my easy-to-break CD/DVD media in a safe place.

That also begs the issue of additional content. It's no trouble to download or purchase new content for games, or even to make my own. What if I want the new levels for Halo 2 but don't want to shell out for Xbox Live? I'm SOL.

I think this just proves that PC vs. console is an issue of preference. IMHO, the decline of PC gaming comes from lack of interest from publishers. How much longer does the PC port of GTA:San Andreas take to come out than the PS2 version? Will Devil May Cry 3 ever be on PC? What about Metal Gear Solid 3?

Re:PC game decline

[Satertek]

Why can't PC games just allow you to pop in a disc and begin playing?

LiveCD Linux distros have really brought out the possiblility for this on the PC. Already there are LiveCDs with games like America's Army and the Return to Castle Wolfenstein expansion. Game saves could be stored on USB sticks or over the internet.

All it would take is one big company to step in a try it. And since PC games need to switch to the DVD format anyway, there would be plenty of space for the LiveCD Linux version, in addition to the Windows version of the game.

After looking around for any sign of life in this area, I couldn't find any. I'll guess that the game patches proved too much an inconvience, as the creator would have to remake the LiveCD after every update. It still looks like a promising area that should be looked into, however.

Linux aside, this should be an option in Windows as well. I personally would not use it, as I like being able to play games without scrambling for CDs, but it would be nice for games played infrequently.

Re:PC game decline

[Elranzer]

heck I write game software for a living -- but these days I find myself buying console games specifically to avoid the hassles of PC gaming installation issues.

How's Electronic Arts been hiring these days?

(Seriously, though, I agree with you. And I'd like to take it a step further.... these issues of swapping Play and Cinema discs, multi-disc installs, etc, would all be moot if the PC game companies would just switch to DVD-ROM. I sometimes wonder why I even have a DVD-ROM in my computer. Hasn't DVD technology been out for what, 10 years already?? Most people have a CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo or even a DVD+/-RW drive in their computer, let alone a DVD-ROM drive at all, so I don't think that's an issue. Why would a company who designs games specifically for $500 graphics cards worry that the PC gamer might not have a $20 DVD-ROM drive to play it from??)

More Space Marines

[superpulpsicle]

When Doom 2 disappeared, Quake filled the space marine void for the gaming industry. If someone made the game less dark, literally Quake 1, 2, 3 could have been Doom 3, 4, 5.

This will be the first time Doom III and Quake IV reach a prime more or less together. Some hardcore gamers might dispute, but besides the monsters and the weapons... the backdrop is way similar.

Re:More Space Marines

[edwdig]

Quake 1 felt totally different than Doom. Quake's atmosphere felt medieval. Replace the shotgun with a crossbow and you could've released Quake as a sequel to Heretic.

Quake 2 I can't really comment on. To me it felt totally different than Quake 1, and never managed to hold my interest past level 2 or so.

Re:PC game decline

[Anonymous Coward]

"If commercial PC gaming tanks, non-commercial efforts will receive at least some of that talent."

Hate to rain on your parade, but this is just plain wrong. People who currently develop commercial PC games are salaried professionals. If PC gaming vanishes, they won't start doing what they did before for money for free (or significantly less money). Rather, they'll just follow their employer's line and start developing for consoles. The majority of games developers aren't actually religious enough about the platforms they develop for to throw away a job over it.

Re:Are you kidding????

[JonathanBoyd]

If you're NOT kidding, you're completely out of your mind. [snip] I spanked them... even the "I finished Goldeneye on 00 Level" guys. And I don't just mean I won. I totally dominated. And on real FPSs, I was never really even that GOOD.... strictly average. But playing with those POS console controllers, and their associated crutches (cheats like auto-aim, for example) instilled so many bad habits into them that even the best were all but helpless against just an average "mouse and keyboard" player.

Surely this proves the point? If a mouse and keyboard was more intuitive and easier to pick up than a controller, then they wouldn't have had too many problems playing against you.

Oh and mocking beating the game on 00 agent mode without having done it yourself doesn't add any credibility to your claims. Same goes for your lack of knowledge that auto-aim can be turned off for multiplayer.

Re:sweeet ... I can't wait to play the next Quake

[Rallion]

If Doom was any indication of the visuals going into Q4, I'm anticipating an awesome game.

If Doom was any indication of the gameplay going into Q4, I'm anticipating a terrible game.

PC Sales

[Taulin]

I still remember the days when Nintendo games first started being rented out in video stores. PC Games were incredibly lacking at the time, and a friend casually asked a video store clerk when they will start renting out PC Games? They said they wouldn't because the market is much smaller. Even though PC Games grew incredibly over the next 20 years, the market in terms of number of games and originality has always been smaller than consoles. Hastings tried renting out PC games in the mid-90s, but stopped from either lack of rentals, or probably the hassle of people complaining they couldn't get the game running on their system (or piracy since CD burners just came out). In the end, I think 'the market' has a hard time looking at PCs as a game venue because of how retail outlets treat them.